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Title: Ultimate X-men, Vol. 1 by Mark Millar, Andy Kubert, Adam Kubert ISBN: 0785110089 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: August, 2002 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $29.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.71
Rating: 4
Summary: The Weapon X Program tries to "recruit" the X-Men
Comment: Despite the title and the cover art for this second trade paperback volume in the "Ultimate X-Men" series (collecting issues 7-12), "Return to Weapon X" does not focus on the character of Wolverine. True, he is a key part of the solution for the predicament our Merry Mutants have found themselves in this time around, but Weapon X is now a big time secret government program run under the auspices of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Nick Fury that has a rather impressive little roster of mutants in its service: Juggernaut, Rogue, Nightcrawler, and Sabertooth. Think of them as the government's answer to the X-Men and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, and that pretty much accounts for all of the mutants belonging to groups at this point in the series.
Despite being on a first name basis with the President of the United States, Xavier's School for Gifted Children is hit by Colonel Wraith and his shock troops, both human and mutant. Now Cyclops, Marvel Girl, and the others will serve the greater good and help the government fight fire with fire (the only good mutant is a mutant with a neural implant). Of course, since this is a comic book, the person in charge of this government program is psychotic and perfectly willing to do anything to do anything to get the job done (or did I mention already that Wraith was in charge?). The main part of the story arc has to do with the X-Men regaining their freedom, but this is also mixed up with Wolverine's search for his past and Nick Fury's search for an illegal genetic operation violating the Superhuman Test-Ban Treaty.
I think that one of the main strengths of the Ultimate comic books is that they emphasize story arcs that take multiple issues (six in this case) so that a dozen issues into the series we have only dealt with two major stories instead of a self-contained episode with a new villain every single month. This should help the well from running dry too quickly. Writer Mark Millar along with Penciller Adam Kubert (with Tom Raney & Tom Derenick) and Inker Art Thibert (with Scott Hanna, Joe Kubert, Danny Miki, & Lary Stucker) are having fun tweaking the "original" X-Men stories and creating some new dynamics (e.g., Storm is interested in Hank McCoy, Nightcrawler does not speak English) so I think that those who have been reading the X-Men since issue #1 of "The Uncanny X-Men" (or issue #1 of "The Giant-Size X-Men") will enjoy the differences more than neophytes and appreciate the way key stories resonant (e.g., Jean Grey is Marvel Girl and not Phoenix when she steps over the line this time around).
"Return to Weapon X" is not as good as the first volume in the series, but it is hard to compete with Magneto when you talking about the X-Men, whichever version of the group is involved. Millar's story is certainly complex enough and you can see all sorts of things being set up for down the road. As long as you are not offended by the very existence of the series, you should find "Ultimate X-Men" or any of the other titles in the Marvel series to be at least entertaining and quite possibility compelling. At the very least, you should be able to appreciate the tweaking.
Rating: 5
Summary: The X-Men versus Magneto, one time, for all the marbles
Comment: I can appreciate the impulse to push the reset button on long time superhero comic books like "X-Men" and "Spider-Man." After all, we are talking about almost four decades worth of stories, repeated encounters with Magneto and the Green Goblin, each one diluting the potency of the character. Plus, if you go back and read the first dozen episodes of either the original comic book "The Uncanny X-Men" of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby or the new and improved "X-Men" concocted by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum (and then John Byrne), it takes a while for both of those series to hit stride. Writer Mark Millar was given a free reign with this project, but clearly "Ultimate X-Men: The Tomorrow People" was constructed to work whether you came in with issue #1 of Volume 1, Giant-Size X-Men, or Volume 2.
I was here for all three, so part of my appreciation for this six-issue story arc from Millar, pencilers Adam & Andy Kubert, and inker Art Thibert (w/Danny Miki) is how they have reconstituted elements from both of the origins. So I remember Quicksilver and the Silver Witch being part of the original Brotherhood of Evil Mutants as well as Storm and Colossus being recruited for the international version of the X-Men. Anyhow, here is a list of things I liked about "The Tomorrow People" without spoiling the actual story:
I liked the idea that in the beginning the X-Men were just Professor Xavier, Cyclops and Marvel Girl. This reconstitutes the idea that there were always the core of the group. Actually, they would be the heart (Jean Grey), mind (Professor X), and soul (Scott Summers) of the X-Men. Having the Beast and Iceman be part of the second wave is fine with me, as is jettisoning Angel (and Banshee from wave two). You have to have limitations on how many merry mutants are running around in the group. On the other side of the equation Wolverine is now the world's best assassin and is working for Magneto. That is obviously a nice little twist on the tale. The mutant hysteria is in full swing, so that the necessity of all the world's mutants having to pick which side of the coming war they want to be on makes a whole lot of sense. This just underscores the idea that "X-Men" was never just a standard superhero battles supervillain type of comic book.
I really appreciate the way the ante has been upped both in terms of the Sentinnels and Magneto. This time around the big purple robots are going around and not just picking up mutants, they are executing them on the spot. But the chief attraction of this sotry arc is Magneto. The original X-Men was one of the few times in the history of Marvel Comics that the first issue of a comic book actually came up with the greatest villain in the history of the entire series. What I liked most about what Millar et al. came up with is the idea that given the powers Magneto has, there can only be one big battle between him and humanity. I mean, with his powers, taking over the world should be relatively easy. Even in the end, he can only be defeated because of an Achilles heel sort of situation. But what really matters here is that this fight is for all the marbles, win or lose, live or die. This is such a big story that I can understand why as long as we are talking rewriting history fans are wishing that this had been the script for the original "X-Men" movie.
At the root of these changes and elucidations is, I believe, a commitment to taking the original ideas of the "X-Men" comic books to their logical extremes. That is the principle that leads to encouraging throughts about future issues of "Ultimate X-Men." After all, Wolverine was just a bit player this time around and I can easily see each of the X-Men and various super-villains defining future story arcs. So far I have really enjoyed the various Ultimate trade paperback collections that I have read, mainly because I find them to be both innovative and traditional at the same time.
Rating: 5
Summary: Awesome!
Comment: An alternate X-Men universe is perhaps the best way for newer readers to come to terms with the characters that have amazed many throughout the years. The familiar characters get a stylish upgrade. Jean Grey with red, spiky hair? Cyclops with a goatee? Iceman with a bandana? You get them all here! Fantastic artwork with a reasonably paced storyline. The X-Men's battle with Magneto's Brotherhood of the Evil Mutants opened its first chapter. A highly recommended read.
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Title: Ultimate Spider-man Vol. 2 by Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Bagley, Ralph Macchio ISBN: 0785110615 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: April, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.99 |
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Title: Ultimate Spider-man Vol. 1 by Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Bagley, Bill Jemas ISBN: 078510898X Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: March, 2002 List Price(USD): $29.99 |
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Title: New X-Men Vol. 2: Imperial by Grant Morrison, Frank Quitely, Ethan Van Sciver ISBN: 0785108874 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: July, 2002 List Price(USD): $19.99 |
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Title: Ultimate X-Men: Ultimate War by Mark Millar, Chris Bachalo ISBN: 0785111298 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: May, 2003 List Price(USD): $10.99 |
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Title: Daredevil, Vol. 2 by Alex Maleev, Brian Michael Bendis ISBN: 0785109269 Publisher: Marvel Books Pub. Date: December, 2002 List Price(USD): $29.99 |
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